Review: Faking It by Cora Carmack

Goodreads Summary:

Mackenzie “Max” Miller has a problem. Her parents have arrived in town for a surprise visit, and if they see her dyed hair, tattoos, and piercings, they just might disown her. Even worse, they’re expecting to meet a nice, wholesome boyfriend, not a guy named Mace who has a neck tattoo and plays in a band. All her lies are about to come crashing down around her, but then she meets Cade.

Cade moved to Philadelphia to act and to leave his problems behind in Texas. So far though, he’s kept the problems and had very little opportunity to take the stage. When Max approaches him in a coffee shop with a crazy request to pretend to be her boyfriend, he agrees to play the part. But when Cade plays the role a little too well, they’re forced to keep the ruse going. And the more they fake the relationship, the more real it begins to feel.

Publication Date: June 4, 2013

I loved Cade from Losing It and was very excited to read his story. Although it wasn’t as terrific as the first book, I still enjoyed Faking It and I’ll definitely continue reading more from the author.

What I like most about the books is the author’s writing style. There were a lot of great one-liners and I loved hearing Cade’s inner monologue. He was very easy to connect to as a character and his self-deprecating sense of humor had me giggling.

Max was a little harder to like and I tried to sympathize because of her past, but I still wanted to shake some sense into her because Cade was freaking amazing! The romance between the two characters was sweet, albeit predictable. I mean over and over again it’s reiterated how different the two of them are and this is why it could never work. I get it: he’s the golden boy and she’s just so edgy.

The tone got more serious as the novel went on, but I didn’t totally feel emotionally invested. I liked the book, but not sure if I’d reread Faking It like I plan to do with Losing It. Maybe it’s because I’ve read so many great books lately and I didn’t feel like this one was memorable enough. I’d still recommend the series for fans of New Adult books and it was nice to see characters from the first novel pop up.

Rating: 3/5 Stars

Thanks to the publisher for a copy of this book for review!

Review: Losing It by Cora Carmack

Goodreads Summary:

Virginity.

Bliss Edwards is about to graduate from college and still has hers. Sick of being the only virgin among her friends, she decides the best way to deal with the problem is to lose it as quickly and simply as possible-- a one-night stand. But her plan turns out to be anything but simple when she freaks out and leaves a gorgeous guy alone and naked in her bed with an excuse that no one with half-a-brain would ever believe. And as if if that weren't embarrassing enough, when she arrives for her first class of her last college semester, she recognizes her new theatre professor. She'd left him naked in her bed about 8 hours earlier.

Publication Date: October 15, 2012

This was a fun and sexy read! I loved the plot and the characters were simply fantastic! I had expected the book to be purely about sex, but it turned out to be much more than that.

Bliss was a fabulous main character. She was neurotic and over analytical, but very relatable. She was also very funny and I thought her awkwardness made for a lot of cute moments between her and Garrick. I’m also a fan of college age characters and I liked that the book dealt with Bliss’s fears of the future after finishing her final year of schooling.

Garrick was pure hotness. He’s good-looking, a teacher and British—it’s like the tri-fecta of a swoon-worthy male lead. I wished for a little more character development surrounding him since besides being attractive, I didn’t feel like the readers got to know him well.

The secondary characters were interesting. I especially liked Cade and my heart hurt for me. The cat was also pretty awesome and a nice sub-plot.

Although sex is a major part of the plot, Losing It is far from an erotic novel. Many of the romantic scenes mostly involved a lot of kissing and longing touches. I think the main conflict isn’t about Bliss losing her virginity, but Bliss letting go of her neuroses and thinking with her heart instead of her head.

One thing I didn’t like was the cover. In my opinion, it just didn’t suit the story. Honestly, it kind of kept me from reading the book right away. Another thing I didn’t like was the progression of Bliss and Garrick’s relationship. SPOILER ALERT They were barely together and then all of a sudden they were exchanging I love yous. I understood the strong physical attraction, but saying I love you and then making plans to move in together seemed a little premature to me. END OF SPOILER

This book is perfect for anyone who is looking for some escapism for a few hours. I’m curious to read more from the author. Perhaps a follow-up book about Cade?

Rating: 4/5 Stars

Thanks to the publisher for a copy of this book for review!